1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a recording medium, a content signal generation apparatus, a content signal reproduction method, and a content signal reproduction apparatus.
2.Description of the Related Art
In recent years, handling information of various contents such as video, audio, and text is becoming possible through digitization. When various contents are digitized and distributed, for example in a case where a recording medium having music, a movie or the like recorded thereon is sold, perfect copies can be readily and unlimitedly produced because the contents are recorded on the recording medium as digital signals. This is a huge merit for users, but becomes a problem for content providers in terms of right protection. Thus, in distributing digitized contents, technologies which can protect copyright without impairing the characteristics inherent in digital information have been put to practical use.
As such a technology for copyright protection, for audio contents, a copy control bit called SCMS (Serial Copy Management System) is provided with the content signal for example in digital audio tapes (DAT) or Mini Discs (MD). This copy control bit indicates whether copying is permitted, prohibited, or if the content has already been copied, and controls copy operation. For video contents, a copy control bit called CGMS (Copy Generation Management System) is provided, for example in the consumer digital video standard (DVC) and DVD-VR (Video Recording). This copy control bit indicates whether copying is permitted, permitted for one generation only, prohibited, or if the content has already been copied, and controls copy operation much like the SCMS. In addition, copy control information (CCI) called CQRT, under study for standardization of DVD-AR (Audio Recording), indicates not only information as to whether copying is permitted or not, but also information for controlling quality of audio and information as to whether copying of the associated content signals is permitted or not, and thus methods of controlling copy operation more closely have been proposed.